Augusta Canal National Heritage Area

A great way to learn the history of the canal. The museum is interactive and fun for the whole family. There are guided boat rides offered 5 days a week as well.
The people are helpful, friendly and kind. The cost is inexpensive and its a fun weekend or week day venture.
Id recommend a visit. We visit at least twice a year.

I visited during the First Annual Augusta Canal Heritage Festival, the first time I'd heard of the canal.

The museum provides an interesting overview of the canal's history with a set of detailed models of the canal area of Augusta. The signage of the displays provides details about who was involved with the building of the canal and the textile mills along its banks and how the canal influenced Augusta.

I suggest that you also visit the Augusta Museum of History. Both the Museum of History and the Augusta Canal exhibits work together to provide a history of Augusta and both can be done in a single day.

The gift shop is small but does have a selection of paperbacks on various subjects of the canal and Augusta. There are also postcards and note paper.

A shortened version of a trip on the canal onboard a canal boat offered during the festival was interesting and relaxing. Going beneath Butt Memorial Bridge with the swallows flitting about was exciting. We saw other wildlife and flowers on the banks during our trip.

Parking for the festival was available on both sides of the converted mill building where the museum is housed.

The canal itself is along a ridge hence elevated above the plaza outside the museum and its building. Metal stairs are used to move from the plaza up to the canal bank.

There is a restaurant across the alley from the museum however I ate lunch from a food truck on my visit.

Beautiful scenery and full of history you can feel. Quiet area below the canal, with a few "artifacts" and remnants of structures. Be mindful of the businesses and residents there when you visit. Walking up to the canal is also a treat. Steady foot traffic of those getting exercise and taking in the scenery or air. Do keep an eye out for the population that calls under the bridges "home". Haven't had a negative experience, but I also respect space.

A short, enjoyable trip! The guide was excellent and the scenery beautiful.

It's very inexpensive for a family day. 6 bucks for a muemsem tour and like 14 for a boat ride. We though the muesmsem and saw alot of history. Also was able to go on the boat ride Tony the boat captain was a very good driver and cool guy. Kelly the tour guide was very informative and knowledgeable about everything. Overall a very good experience and want to bring my family back to it.

What a wonderful Museum that tells the history of the Augusta Canal and how it was built. The Visionaries Samuel Cummings believe that water could be used to Power Machinery .
The Savannah River Runs Through Augusta Georgia and during a Six Mile Stretch takes a 52 foot drop discovered by a engineer and surveyor, Water was diverted from the Savannah River to create the Augusta canal. The 52 foot water drop power turned turbines which turned pulleys to provide Power to the local flour Mill and textile economies. Augusta Georgia was a great textile City, its heavy use of cotton during that Era produced beautiful textiles from cotton it's other major industry

My mother works on the boat tours and at the museum so I am admittedly a little biased. That being said the place is fantastic great views fun time an all around beautiful setting which provides a blast into August's past well worth a visit . We just had a baby shower at the event center which was more than sufficient. I highly recommend having a visit and walking in the same shoes that the hardworking families that built Augusta walked in.

Very nice little museum. I learned a lot about the history of Augusta and it's Canal. I always wondered how a loom worked too and now I know!

History of the canal and its influence on life in Augusta was laid out in very interesting and at times humorous fashion. Would recommend to everyone to take the tour.

This is one of the beautiful places in downtown Augusta. Great environment and is great for run, relax, read or just a walk with your family or a loved one. You can see South Carolina at the other side of the river. A lot of people having photo shooting on the premise. Most visit if you go to Augusta.

Great tour and sights of downtown Augusta . You get free admission to the museum with the boat tour. It's not a whole lot to see but it's done well.

So much fun. So peaceful. And our guides were AMAZING too! The boat is big and plenty room for social distancing if that's a concern.

I enjoyed it....I love hearing about Southern history especially in the are we live in.

This is such an important location in the greater Augusta area. Teaching us about our history and, about ecosystems and natural conservation concerns. Plus the canal boat rides are just plain fun, as well as beautiful.

great place to take a nice boat ride on a petersburg style electric boat. they have musicians sometimes too😎

What a cool tour! Learned many fascinating things about the city of Augusta!

Visited a while back, had an interesting tour on the boat. Learned many historical facts about my home town I never knew.

We brought the kids from Lexington SC and it was a fun event. Kids loved being on the roomy boat (even my 76 year old mother climbed on with relative ease), cool sights and nature viewing. The discovery center was also really interesting. Kids bought coonskin caps at gift shop and wear them everywhere :)

Great place to learn about the Augusta Canal and its history. Canal boat rides available too!

One of Augusta’s fun places to visit. Learn about the city’s history, reasons for building the canal, its uses over the years. Then, take a ride in a Petersburg boat up the canal. See the Butt Bridge, old textile mills being refurbished and repurposed, wildlife and other sites explained by your guide. A must see!